Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1887-05-15

before it is found it goes through so many
hands that if some of the contents are miss
ing il is very hard work TO locate the
depredator. Oftentimes complaints are
made to the p~OstOflioe of losses of letters
when the fault Is not chargeable to the
postOfiee, but to the fact that some dis
honest messenger boy or clerk is tamper-
ing with the mail in the very Office the
complaint proceeds from. l have on rec
ord q great many cases Of this kind, and
the hard worked but honest pOstofice clerk
is under suspicion until the real culprit is
found.
THE business carried ON by the money
order department is enormous, and still 1t
is very seldom that a money order Is paid
wrongtully. Once in a great while the
signature on a money order is forged, but
this does not ensure the payment OF said
money order, aud the forger is very like
ly, on presentation, to be requested in
q polite manner to sit down and
wait q few moments. In the mean
time an officer is notified. In
terpreters have to be ON hand in both this
and the registered letter department to
transact the business with the foreign ele'
ment, and these foreigners look Oh our
postal system rs the best method to trans
port money, not only in the United States,
but to their own country. An Italian
interpreter gave the office some trouble
about month ago. He had been in the
service about two years, and had
the confidence OF his cOuntrymen.
After a while he conceived the idea Of
swindling them in this way. They, not
knowing the regulations, and not suspect
ing this man OF any dishonest motive, gave
him the money they wished to send home
and the address il was to be mailed to.
They then would be told it was all right.
In some cases he would give them his in
diyidual receipt on official paper. The
money never would leave the pocket Ofthis
rascal except to pay for some dissipation.
1t was the mans dissolute habits that ii
nally aroused my suspicion, and arrested
him. lie is now serving his time.
1T is 4 grave offence against the United
States law to mail any infammable or ex-
plOSive substance, but it has been done in
the New York office and on II occasion
nearly caused trouble. In the spring OF
lSS2 two packages were dropped in the
main Office, one addressed 10 Hon. Cyrus
W. Field and one to the late William ii.
Vanderbilt. The one addressed to MIR.
Vanderbilt exploded in the elevated rail
road car. The force of the explosion nearly
threw the car off the track and set fire to
the mail. IL was extinguished, however,
before any serious damage was done. An
examination Of the rest of the mail discOY-
cred the package addressed to Hon. Cyrus
W. Field. Each Of the packages contain
ed over halfa pound of gun-cOtton with
chemicals in glass tubes, so arranged
as to ignite rs soon rs the cover oil
the box which contained the same was re-
moved. There is nothing left of the Van
derbilt package, but l have i'm my COllec-
ton the one addressed to Mr.. Field. An
other package containing dynamite so ar,
ranged that as soon as the end Ofthe pack
aye vas removed would cause the dis,
charge Of a small pistol, and cOnse-
quently the dynamite can be also
seen at my office ut 100 Broad
way. This package was sent to me by
some unknown person, and II | had opened
il, as perhaps one less careful might have
done, It is possible I would not he here tC
tell you about it. But before the cover Oh
end was removed the whole package wa
/ placed IN u bucket of water, and there II
was left until completely saturated"
Mr.. NewcOmbe has made a great many
arrests both in the New York office and
over his district generally, and his ScraT
hook Of his detective office, 1859 Broadway
is full of interesting clippings from the
press all over the country. In the New
York office the most of the arrests have
been made from the branches; these depre.
datiOns were mostly on ordinary mai
matter.